You’re dreaming of
guaranteed sunshine, a beach, peace, privacy, clean facilities and an onsite
restaurant for when you don’t want to move a muscle – with good transport
links. Well, how about this for camping nirvana?
Situated far
enough from the overdeveloped tourist ports, but within reach of lively
shopping and bar action is this walled, Eden-like campsite. Over the past two
decades, the owners have planted seeds
and cuttings from their travels,
creating botanical mayhem that will make you feel as if you’re camping in a
garden centre.
Marked plots near
the entrance are spacious, terraced along tree-lined avenues. There’s a second
zone of larger pitches, but wherever you end
up you’re guaranteed shade – a blessing under the Portuguese sun.
If you want to
venture further afield, time the 20-minute drive to the lighthouse
at Cabo de
São Vicente – the most southwesterly tip of Europe (next stop, America) – to
catch a majestic sunset that will humble your soul. Closer to home, a short
amble will take you to nearby Salema beach – like many on the Algarve, it’s
full of pink-skinned Northern Europeans wishing that life could be like this
every day.